Tag Archives: Recipes

Spring Dogs Love Tomato Soup. They Hate Citrus. Recipe: Tomato Soup

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Almost everyone claims that grilled cheese goes best with tomato soup.  As a kid though, I NEVER wanted tomato soup with grilled cheese.  I don’t know if my parents didn’t like tomato soup or what, but we never had it with grilled cheese so I just assumed for years that I didn’t like it.  In fact, until a year or two ago I don’t believe I actually had a bowl of tomato soup in my life.  Now, I am not one of those people who craves tomato soup, but this colder weather has me in the mood for something warm and comforting.  A couple weeks ago Alyssa and I went to Spiro’s in Iron Mountain and I ordered a Dr. Pepper braised short rib grilled cheese sandwich.  It was fantastic and I am pretty sure I asked Alyssa why more restaurants don’t put grilled cheese on the menu.  It is one of the ultimate comfort foods and so simple to make.  The next two days we made grilled cheese and I put some of my beer braised chuck roast in mine.  That weekend rekindled my love of grilled cheese and this week I was in the mood for them again.  As I was cruising Serious Eats I came across a recipe for Nordstrom’s Tomato Basil Soup. Bells went off in my head: warm, comforting, and supposedly the perfect companion to grilled cheese.  Remember, I am not one to crave tomato soup, but according to the recipe, this soup has a cult-like following.  It looked easy enough with just a few ingredients and it was something I could whip up fairly quickly.  So here it goes.

Gather the gang for a pool party.

Chop up some aromatic vegetables.

Let them get nice and cozy with some aromatic herbs.

Add EVERYBODY to the pool.

Simmer, cool, blend, add cream, simmer, serve, enjoy.

This soup is fantastic.  Ellie gave it 4 paws up, in fact she has been trying her hardest all night to get the leftovers as they cool on the counter.  Though, she does not like grapefruit peels (I had to test the theory that dogs don’t like citrus).  I won’t join the cult of Nordstrom Tomato Basil Soupeans after eating it tonight, but it is a great side dish to a grilled cheese on delicious natural starter home baked bread (which I will post about in the future).

Recipe: Tomato Soup (adapted from Serious Eats)

  • 6 tablespoons olive oil
  • 4 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil, crushed
  • 3 28-ounce cans whole peeled Roma tomatoes
  • 1 quart chicken broth
  • 1 pint heavy cream (we used half and half, and probably only 10-12 oz.)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  1. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add carrots and onion and cook until beginning to soften, 10 minutes, then add basil and cook until vegetables are completely soft, about 5 minutes more.

  2. Add tomatoes and broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20-30 minutes, or up to 45 minutes if time permits.

  3. After allowing soup to cool somewhat, purée in a blender or food processor until smooth, doing so in batches if necessary. For a much silkier texture, strain the purée before returning to the pot (we didn’t strain it, the texture just added to the comfort factor).

  4. Stir in cream little by little over over low heat, until desired texture is reached and soup is just heated through (we used about 10-12 oz). Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve warm.

Recipe: Grapefruit Brûlée

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Tonight when I got out of work and walked to my car I was chilled to the bone.  It’s not even that the air was actually that cold, but it just felt colder than any day yet this fall.  As you know from a few posts ago, I love winter as much as anybody, but when it is cold and there is no snow on the ground I will definitely complain.  Alyssa is staying in Escanaba tonight because she is on call, so I had leftover porketta and some breakfast potatoes for dinner.  That warm, hearty meal didn’t warm me up all the way, nor fill me up.  I knew we had ice cream, frozen custard, frozen yogurt, and Italian ice in the freezer but on a night like tonight something cold was out.  It just so happens we bought some grapefruit last night at the grocery store, mainly for a drink I want to make this week, but also because they are one of our favorite fruits.  I think one of the reasons we like them so much is that they are at their peak during the dead of winter in the UP and it’s a mini vacation eating tropical fruit during a blizzard.  I don’t know where I came across this idea for turning a tart, cool, fruit into a warm, sweet, spicy dessert in 5 minutes or less but it is fantastic.   Everyone has probably had some grapefruit with sugar sprinkled on top which is good, but broiling it transforms the fruit into something delicious.  The tartness mellows and it becomes kind of a sweet and sour mix that makes you wonder why there aren’t many recipes out there that use grapefruit.  So here is this simple, fast, delicious, even elegant dessert that is good for you too.  All it takes is a grapefruit, brown sugar, cinnamon, and some heat.

Start with a grapefruit and get your broiler going.

Cut it in half and cut out the wedges

Sprinkle some cinnamon and a healthy pinch of brown sugar on top, put it on some sort of high heat proof pan

Pop it in under the broiler, wait 3-4 minutes until golden brown on top and pull out.

Dig in and make sure to squeeze the juice out after you eat the fruit, I will even show you the proper technique.

 

Grapefruit Brûlée

  • 1 grapefruit
  • a dash of cinnamon
  • 1-2 tsp brown sugar

Start with a grapefruit and get your broiler going.  Cut it in half and cut out the wedges.  Sprinkle some cinnamon and a healthy pinch of brown sugar on top, put it on some sort of high heat proof pan.  Pop it in under the broiler, wait 3-4 minutes until golden brown on top and pull out.  Enjoy.